Nuggets on the Brink
The Denver Nuggets are on the brink of their first NBA Finals appearance in franchise history, knocking off the Los Angeles Lakers 119-108 to take a commanding 3-0 lead in the Western Conference Finals. The Nuggets can close out the series in Los Angeles on Monday.
The Nuggets’ Jamal Murray scored a game-high 37 points, 30 of them coming in the first half. Murray shot 15-29 from the field, including 5-11 from 3-point range. He also contributed seven rebounds, six assists, and two steals while committing just one turnover.
Murray became just the third player in NBA history to record at least 30 points, five rebounds, and five assists in each of the first three games of a conference finals, joining Tim Duncan (2003 WCF) and LeBron James (2015 ECF).
Nuggets center Nikola Jokic scored 24 points on 9-19 shooting from the floor, adding a team-high eight assists and six rebounds. Jokic has series averages of 27.0 PPG, 14.7 RPG, and 11.3 APG, becoming just the second player in NBA history to average a 20-point triple-double through the first three games of a conference finals (James, 2015 ECF).
Murray and Jokic have recorded at least 20 points, five rebounds, and five assists apiece in each of the first three games of the series. They are the first duo in NBA history to open a playoff series with three such games in a row.
Bruce Brown provided a spark off the bench for the Nuggets, scoring 15 points on 6-11 shooting from the field. Brown added five rebounds and five assists in his 29 minutes played, and he did not commit a turnover.
The Lakers’ Anthony Davis scored a team-high 28 points and hauled in a game-high 18 rebounds in the loss. Davis made 11 of his 18 attempts from the field and six of his eight free throws.
The aforementioned James tallied 23 points, a game-high 12 assists, and seven rebounds for the Lakers. It’s the 138th double-double of James’ playoff career, breaking a tie with Bill Russell for fifth place on the NBA’s all-time list:
164 — Tim Duncan
157 — Magic Johnson
143 — Wilt Chamberlain
142 — Shaquille O’Neal
138 — LeBron James
137 — Bill Russell
Austin Reaves was the third Laker to record a 20-point game, matching James’ 23 points while grabbing seven rebounds and dishing out five assists. Reaves shot 7-10 from the floor — including 3-5 from 3-point range — and made all six of his free throws.
Davis, James, and Reaves have each scored at least 20 points in the same game four times this postseason, the most such games by a Lakers trio since Magic Johnson, James Worthy, and Byron Scott did so five times in 1988.